Mounted Scarab of Hatshepsut
Description
Object Label: Personal Arts The reigns of Hatshepsut through Thutmose IV represent a transitional phase in Eighteenth Dynasty art. At first, artists continued to favor simple, elegant forms common earlier in the dynasty, but eventually they developed elaborate, highly detailed designs that dominated the dynasty’s final decades. Under Amunhotep II and Thutmose IV, for example, craftsmen increased the use of a soft, pastel blue pigment that had been invented during the reign of Thutmose III. Potters also molded vessels in human and animal form, and artisans rediscovered the Middle Kingdom fascination for colorful stones such as red carnelian. Art historians consider the scarabs (beetleshaped amulets) of this era among the finest ever made. Figure Vase of Woman Holding Dog Caption: Mounted Scarab of Hatshepsut, ca. 1478–1458 B.C.E.. Gold, steatite, glaze, 9/16 × 7/8 in. (1.4 × 2.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Theodora Wilbour from the collection of her father, Charles Edwin Wilbour, 35.1118. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum)
AI image analysis GPT-4o-2024-08-06
Machine-generated from the object's image on May 2026. Not curatorial; treat deities, names, and signs below as the model's best reading, not authority.
An Egyptian scarab artifact with detailed engravings.
The artifact is a small, intricately carved scarab likely made from steatite and glazed to resemble faience. It features detailed engravings and is secured in a gold setting, suggesting its use as a decorative or amuletic object. The craftsmanship indicates attention to detail, characteristic of personal adornment items in ancient Egypt.
Cross-references (2)
- BKM-Accession 35.1118 tier-2
- BKM-Object 3352 tier-2
About this record's data
- From the source institution — accession, description, dimensions, and dating are as catalogued by Brooklyn Museum — Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art.
- AI-inferred — the image-analysis panel (deities, names, signs) is machine-generated and may be wrong.
- Approximate location — most map points are plotted at the site centroid, not the exact findspot.
- Inferred links — cross-references marked with a match method other than explicit-source-field were matched by us, not stated by the source.